Meat Grades: Prime, Choice & Select

Wondering what meat grades really mean? Well, four generations of Schweid & Sons know a thing or two about that! There are 3 USDA quality and yield grades for meat – Prime, Choice, and Select. 

Here’s a quick rundown of how meat makes the grade. 

Prime

The youngest beef of all the meat grades, USDA Prime beef is restaurant quality. They are the most tender and also have the most marbling (fat interspersed in the meat). Marbling adds depths of flavor to your beef and will give you a savory bite every time. 

Choice

With less marbling than Prime beef, Choice meat cuts still tend to be very tender, juicy, and flavorful when cooked over dry heat. If you’re looking to save a buck or two while still getting great beef, USDA Choice grade beef is less expensive than a cut of Prime beef.

Select 

The leanest of the grades (with the least amount of marbling), Select meats are characteristically very uniform in quality and less juicy than the other grades. 

At Schweid & Sons, we carry a wide selection of pre-formed Burgers and ground beef that include Angus, Certified Angus Beef®, All-Natural, Wagyu, USDA Prime®, Grassfed, and Custom Blends. 

Try our Katana (Wagyu) blend – a highly-marbled USDA Wagyu® beef with no added hormone or antibiotics – or our award-winning Butcher’s Blend  – made from a proprietary blend of chuck round and sirloin to create great steak flavor in a juicy Burger.

As Sam Schweid always said, “If you put only good meat into your burgers, only good things will come out.”  

Learn more about how meat makes the grade here and head on over to our products page to view all of our quality grade meat blends and Burgers. Search our store locator to find partner stores near you. 

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